State Rep. Kathleen Clyde (D- Kent) released the following statement about a major new report by Pew Charitable Trusts ranking Ohio in the bottom quarter of states for overall election performance and the bottom 6 states for high rates of provisional ballots:

“Ohio scored poorly for one primary reason: our terrible performance on provisional ballots. Too many Ohioans are forced to cast provisional ballots and too many Ohioans’ ballots are thrown out over technical errors not even caused by the voter. It’s a problem my colleagues and I have fought to fix for many years now, while Ohio Republicans have instead fought the counting of votes.

Secretary Husted claimed he would reduce the number of provisional ballots. But, provisional voting increased on his watch in 2012 compared to the 2008 presidential election. The only improvement came in the counting rate of provisional ballots in 2012, but that was likely due to a Democratic court victory forcing Ohio to count ballots cast at the wrong precinct table but correct polling location. Ohio could have seen a major improvement in vote counting if this common sense approach had been extended to voters who cast ballots in the wrong polling location at no fault of their own. However, Secretary Husted fought for those ballots to be thrown out and won. As a result, nearly 10,000 Ohio voters’ ballots were thrown out for this reason.

First, we must ensure that wrongly-rejected votes are counted in the still unresolved elections contest in the 98th Ohio House District. Second, we must undertake a comprehensive review of Ohio’s election system to further explore the problems outlined in this report and outline potential solutions. Finally, we must work in a true bipartisan effort to enact legislative changes that address real problems with Ohio elections. I look forward to that challenge.”

State Rep. Kathleen Clyde (D-Kent) today announced the release of over $1.23 million in state funds for various area projects, including improvements at the Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED), Kent State University (KSU) and Camp Ravenna.